Clutch structure



' June 11, 1946. c. GERSLT I 2,401,364

CLUTCH STRUCTURE Filed Nov. 19, 1945 INVENT OR.

cums seas? BY I Q' Wart.

Patented June ll,

UNITED STATES I PATENT? OFFICE camcrs rft tjcruas I Chris Gerst, Dearborn, Mich.

Application November 19, 1943, Serial No. 510,987

This invention relates in general to clutches and, more particularly, to friction clutches in which the driving connection between the friction elements of .the clutch is effected by lever mechanism actuated upon by shiftable collar means.

The general object of the present invention is the provision of a simplified form of friction clutch which embodies shiftable cam and ball means arranged to efiect engagement of the friction elements and permit disengagement of these friction elements when the cam and ball means are shifted in opposite directions. I

Another object of the invention is the provision of a simplified form of friction, clutch which embodies shiftable ball means and shiftable cam and collar means cooperating with said ball means in effecting engagementof the friction elements and collar means in opposite directions'to effect Shifting of the ball means, in which clutch the cam and collar means are constructed to partly enclose and retain the ball means and to provide cam surfaces for eifecting shifting of the ball means.-

Still another object of the invention is the provision of a simplified form bf friction clutch .3 Claims. (01. 192--93) I ious ways without departure from the true spirit and broad scope of the invention.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal, sectional view, partly in elevation through a friction clutch embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view on line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view on line 3-3 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatical view showing thev relation of the shiftable ball means and the shiftable cam and collar'means in operative and inoperative position of the clutch.

Referring now in detail to the exemplified form of clutch structure shown in the drawing, reference numeral 2 denotes a multi-plate friction pressure plate I, the former contacting the left 7 face of the collection of disks and the latter the which embodies shiftable ball means and shiftable cam and collar means cooperating with said ball means in effecting engagement of the friction elements of the clutch with the said cam and collar means including a ring-shaped ball guiding course of the following specification.

The drawing accompanying and forming part of the specification illustrates certain practical embodiments of the invention, but it will be apparent as the specification proceeds that the right face. Backing plate 8 is held on hub I by split ring 8 and pressure plate I- is slidably secured to said hub by the teeth 9 which extend into the grooves III of splined hub 3. Shifting of pressure plate I for engagement of friction disks 4 and 5 is eflected by a ball and cam assembly l2, to be described hereinafter, and disks 4 and 5 are yieldingly retracted to released position by a plurality of springs H extended through- 01' base member l5 opposite pressure plate I and have their rear walls 20 inclined to shift balls 1 structure may be modified and changed in var- 66 H which contact the cam surface II of pressure plate '1 toward said pressure plate when these balls are shifted-in said recesses by collar mem-' H in radial recesses IB when collar member I6 is shifted toward pressureplat'e 1. During such operations, balls I! when shifted in radial recesses l8 are simultaneously shifted laterally toward pressure plate 1 due to the inclination of the rear walls 20 of said recesses and shift pressure plate 7 into clutching position. Preferably, asshown, lateral shifting of pressure plate 1 is stepped up by inclining the surface 2| on said pressure plate so as to form a cam surface. Shiftingof collar member it in an opposite direction frees balls I! in their radial recesses i8 and permits their shifting in an opposite direction by compression springs 29 mounted in bores 29 in hub 3, Springs 28 engage the balls- I! and yield ingly force same into engagement with wall 30 of cylindrical bore 25 and shifting of collar member It in this direction is limited by a circumferential flange 3| on base ring member I5.

/ Tlie cam and ball assembly. as stated above,

is slidably and non-rotatably mounted on hub 3 and held in adjusted position by an internally threaded ring or collar 32 screwed upon the threaded end 33 of hub 3. This collar whichextends into bore 34 in base ring member l5, limits the movement of said base ring member and provides for axial adjustment of the cam and ball assembly to take up wear, etc. For such purpose collar 32 carries a spring-pressed locking pin 35 cooperating with a series of bores 36 in the 4 forces 17 and e is also rectangularly related to cam surface 2|.

Having thus described my invention, ,what

claim is: v I

1. In a friction clutch structure a hub. a pressure plate with a cone-shaped outer surface slidably mounted on said hub, and a cam and ball assembly for shifting said pressure plate on said ring-shaped member mounted on said hub having radial cam slots arranged in'the wall of said ringshaped member opposite the cone-shaped outer surface of said pressure plate, balls in said slots.

hub said cam and ball assembly including a A and radial springs in said slots yieldingly forcing said balls tofioatingly contact the cam means of said ring-shaped member and the cone-shaped,

outer surface of said pressure plate, and ring shaped cam means having an inner surface including a cylindrical surface portion and a cam surface portion,- said cam means being slidably and non-rotatably mounted on said ring-shaped member and adapted to retain said balls and shift same toward said hub to effect shifting of said pressure plate. 2. In a friction clutch tional clutching means mounted on one end portion of said hub including ajshiftable pressure means, a pressure means shifting cam and ball structure a hub, fricassembly slidably and non-rotatably mounted on said hub including a ring-shaped member having cam means opposite said pressure means,

spring-pressed balls mountedto fioatingly 'con-' tact said cam means and said pressure means,

and ring-shaped cam means having an inner surface including a cylindrical and a cam surface portion, said cam means being slidably and nonrotatably mounted on said ring-shaped member for retaining and shifting said balls, and ringshaped adjusting means threaded upon the other .end portion of said hub,'said ring-shaped mem- I ber including a concentric recess in its wall and rear wall 3'! of bore 34, which locking pin properly secures the assembly in adjusted position.

Preferably, the angular relation of the cam surfaces, i. e. the cone-shaped wall 27, therear walls 20 of recesses l8 and the cam surface 2| of pressure plate I with respect to each other and the axis of the clutch is arranged so that in clutching operations the resultants of all forces applied on balls H are rectangularly related to,

cam surface 2| of pressure plate I; so as to limit wear and tear on said balls and cam surface. This will readily be understood from an inspection of the diagram shown in Fig. 4, which diagram discloses in full line the position of the different elements before clutching operations and in dash-dotted line the positions taken up by these elements during-clutching operations.

It will be noted that in the full-line position the resultant a of forces 22 and c is rectan ularly related to the cam surfac 2| and that in the dash-dotted-line position the resultant a of the said adjusting means being extended into said recess and contacting the end and side walls thereof to supportsaid ring-shaped member and shift same axially with respect to said pressure means when said adjusting-means is rotated with respect to said hub and ring-shaped member.

3. In a friction clutch structure with shiftable pressure means an adjustably mounted actuating member for said pressure means, said actuating member embodying a shiftable ring member having its face opposite said pressure means radially slotted with slots having inclined bottom walls, and its other face centrally cylindrically recessed, spring-pressed balls in said slots cooperating with said pressure means in clutching operations, a

second ring member shiftably mounted on said first ring member including cam means for I radially shifting said balls, and rotatable adiust- 1 ing means for said first ring member extended into and snugly fitting the cylindrical recessthereof for additionally supporting same.-

.cmus oaas'r. 

